What I’m Thankful for (2019)

Happy Thanksgiving GIF - Thanksgiving Chase Turkey GIFs

I neglected to post my annual “thankfulness” blog last year for Thanksgiving. It wasn’t because I wasn’t thankful; I just forgot to do it. I’m remedying that this year. So, here are 100 things I’m thankful for in 2019.

  1. God the Father
  2. Jesus Christ
  3. The Holy Spirit
  4. My salvation
  5. The Bible
  6. My wonderful family
  7. My two nephews
  8. My amazing friends
  9. My equally amazing writer friends
  10. The Fort Wayne Ballroom Company (FWBC)
  11. My “dance family” at FWBC
  12. That I continue to perform at FWBC’s showcases and other events with wonderful instructors/partners
  13. Ballroom/social dancing
  14. For all the conventions I attended this year
  15. Tatsumaki (my car)
  16. My new church
  17. My gaming consoles and video games
  18. My book collection
  19. My movie collection
  20. My laptop
  21. My music collection
  22. My new podcast, The Monster Island Film Vault
  23. For being a PFW grad student
  24. My graduate teaching assistanceship
  25. My cosplays
  26. That I’m a published author
  27. Hades Publications, which published my first novel and still has me under contract
  28. CreateSpace, which publishes my self-published books
  29. That I have some exciting writing projects in the works
  30. My strong sense of justice
  31. The Fortress of Solitude (my apartment)
  32. My talent for writing
  33. all for One Productions
  34. Volunteering for afO
  35. My YouTube channel
  36. For being part of the team writing at Children of the Wells
  37. That I’m creative
  38. My intellectual mind
  39. My poet’s soul
  40. My warrior’s heart
  41. That I can read
  42. My iPhone 11
  43. That I’m an American
  44. That I’m a Hoosier
  45. Summertime
  46. October (the “sweet spot” of autumn)
  47. Changing seasons
  48. Christian Gamers Guild
  49. Nerd Chapel
  50. Theology Gaming
  51. My sense of humor
  52. Allen County Public Library
  53. The Constitution, which lists my unalienable rights.
  54. My “superpowers” (rarely get sick, my “BS” sense, look much younger than I am, heal fast from injuries).
  55. My health
  56. Netflix
  57. Disney+
  58. My RodeCaster Pro
  59. My knack for photography
  60. Pretzels
  61. Exercising at the gym.
  62. My comic book collection
  63. Chimp’s Comics
  64. B.E. Comics
  65. My board game collection
  66. My nerdiness
  67. The police and their service
  68. The military and their service
  69. My journal(s)
  70. My website (www.NathanJSMarchand.com)
  71. My fandoms
  72. Gen-Con
  73. The family pets
  74. Bookstores
  75. Spaghetti
  76. Highland toffee (the family recipe)
  77. www.Amazon.com
  78. Movie theatres
  79. My college degree
  80. Running water
  81. That I’m tall
  82. That I still have all my hair
  83. Football
  84. (Most of) My coworkers
  85. The generosity of others
  86. The TUFW Alumni and Friends Center
  87. That I attended TUFW
  88. That I moved to Fort Wayne
  89. For living in the countryside
  90. Plumbing
  91. The Internet (though I sometimes wonder if it’s that great…)
  92. My gig with InstaCart
  93. Facebook (again, sometimes I wonder if it’s worthwhile…)
  94. Holidays
  95. Family reconciliation
  96. My intelligence
  97. Arizona Tea Herbal Energy Tonic (cheaper than any energy drink!)
  98. YouTube (though again, it’s merits are often debatable)
  99. Candy
  100. And finally…MORE STAR WARS!

What are you thankful for this year?

The Monster Island Film Vault – Episode 4: Timothy Deal vs. ‘Son of Kong’

I know I haven’t been blogging much lately, but here’s the latest episode of my podcast to tide you over. I’ll write more about the lack of posts later.


Hello, kaiju lovers!

After Jimmy From NASA flies him back to Indiana to get his microphone, Timothy Deal of the Derailed Trains of Thought podcast returns to Monster Island to continue the “Kong Quest” with Son of Kong, the almost forgotten sequel to King Kong. If the 1933 masterpiece is a grand myth, the sequel is a pleasant bedtime story. Screenwriter Ruth Rose, when talking about writing this film, said, “If you can’t go bigger, go funnier,” which is an apt statement about this film and sequels in general. Nathan and Tim’s lively discussion connects Son of Kong to the Russian film Battleship Potemkin, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and Terminator 2: Judgment Day—and gives Jimmy a lot of work for “Jimmy’s Notes.” They also theorize about what happened to “Mrs. Kong”/Kiko’s mother, which actually puts this and the first film into perspective…sorta. The Toku Topic builds off of the previous one with a philosophical discussion of how 1930s filmmakers addressed the Depression in their movies, touching on themes like escapism and collective rage.

Here’s the Kaijuvision Radio episode on King Kong vs. Godzilla for you to listen to as part of MIFV’s Kong coverage: Episode 8: King Kong vs. Godzilla (1962) (The Japanese Economic Miracle (The Golden 60s))

Timestamps:
Intro: 0:00-3:49
Entertaining Info Dump: 3:49-9:43
Toku Talk: 9:43-56:24
Toku Topic: 56:24-1:19:44
Outro: 1:19:44-end

© 2019 Moonlighting Ninjas Media

Bibliography/Further Reading
“Culture and Politics in the Great Depression” by Alan Brinkley

“Escapism” (Wikipedia)

“Escapism and Leisure Time 1929-1941” (Enclopedia.com)

“How the Great Depression inspired Hollywood’s golden age” by Paul Whitington

Kaijuvision Radio, Episode 2: Godzilla Origins – King Kong (1933) and The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms (1953)

King Kong: History of a Movie Icon from Fay Wray to Peter Jackson by Ray Morton

Kong Unbound: The Cultural Impact, Pop Mythos, and Scientific Plausibility of a Cinematic Legend (edited by Karen Haber)

Kong Unmade: The Lost Films of Skull Island by John LeMay

Son of Kong Wiki Articles
Gojipedia
Wikizilla
Wikipedia

Son Of Kong (1933) Review – Kong-A-Thon Episode 2 (DMan1954)

Tracking King Kong: A Hollywood Icon in World Culture (2nd edition) by Cynthia Erb

The Uses of Enchantment: The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales by Bruno Bettelheim (pg. 45-60)

“Why Fantasy Matters Too Much” by Jack Zipes